Ogles says Trump should fix ‘legislative opioid debacle’

Republican conservative U.S. Senate candidate Andy Ogles is calling on President Donald Trump to issue an Executive Order directing DEA and other federal agencies to use all available means to intensify the investigation and prosecution of those engaged in the reckless, illegal and dangerous overprescription and distribution of opioids.

“Congress has tied the hands of our law enforcement officials as they seek to crack down on the illegal distribution of opioids, but with the law enforcement powers they retain they should aggressively pursue those who are fueling the opioid epidemic,” Ogles said. “I urge President Trump to issue an Executive Order directing the DEA and other federal law enforcement agencies to immediately intensify their investigations and prosecutions of those who are engaged in the illegal distribution of opioids to the fullest extent allowed by law.”

Ogles noted that other agencies of the Federal government such as the VA and HHS may have paths to investigate and reduce the overprescription of opioids and that the Administration should instruct those agencies to review the laws and regulations currently in effect to determine how they can more aggressively restrict the distribution and reliance on opioids. “While Congress tries to figure out how to clean up the legislative mess they have created, the Trump Administration needs to have an ‘all hands on deck’ approach to reducing the addictive drugs being pushed into our communities.”

“The other addiction that this legislative opioid debacle reveals is the fact that Congress is hooked on special interest money and has an insatiable need for a ‘fix’ in the form of PAC money. Draining the swamp will require sending people to Congress who will ‘just say no’ to the lure of that addictive money so that our leaders can focus on the interests of the American people rather than the special interests and their lobbyists.”

Note: U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, who is opposing Ogles in the Republican U.S. Senate primary, was earlier criticized for her role in passage of the legislation by Rep. Stephen Fincher, who is expected to enter the GOP race as well, and Democrats. (Previous post HERE.) Blackburn has received about $120,000 in political contributions from the pharmaceutical industry, according to the Washington Post.